Protests fizzle as Aasia Bibi expected to leave country

ISLAMABAD: A call by Pakistani religious hardliners for protests fell flat Wednesday as Aasia Bibi, the Christian woman at the centre of a years-long blasphemy row, was expected to leave the country having cleared a last legal hurdle.

The Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP), which led days of violent mass demonstrations after Bibi was acquitted of blasphemy last year, announced new protests after the Supreme Court upheld her innocence in a fresh ruling Tuesday.

But its leaders remain in detention after a government crackdown several weeks ago, and police deployed heavily at the junction between the capital Islamabad and neighbouring Rawalpindi which the TLP had designated as a protest site, preventing any huge gathering.

A mere 20 people demonstrated in Lahore while just eight mobilised in Rawalpindi, despite emotive calls from the TLP that its supporters "cannot compromise on the honour of the Prophet (SAW)".

Bibi was convicted of blasphemy in 2010 and was on death row until her acquittal last year. She has been in protective custody since, and the government has refused to reveal her whereabouts for fear of her being targeted by vigilantes.

On Tuesday the Supreme Court threw out a petition seeking a final appeal in the case, which has drawn worldwide attention to religious extremism in Pakistan.

"Is this the face of Islam that we want to show to the world?" Chief Justice Asif Saeed Khosa asked a packed courtroom in Islamabad as he delivered the decision, expressing frustration at the furious reaction by an extremist minority to Bibi´s case over the years.

The ruling has set the stage for Bibi to finally leave the country. Speculation is rampant that she will seek asylum in a North American or European country, and unconfirmed reports suggest her children have already fled to Canada.

Blasphemy remains a massively inflammatory issue in Pakistan, where even unproven accusations of insulting Islam can spark lynchings.

Meanwhile, the Foreign Office on Wednesday maintained that Aasia Bibi has the right to travel anywhere after the Supreme Court of Pakistan's verdict absolved her from the blasphemy charges.

The SC rejected a review petition challenging the top court's decision to acquit Aasia Bibi, a peasant Christian woman enmeshed in a years-long blasphemy row.

A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Asif Saeed Khosa and comprising Justice Qazi Faez Isa and Justice Mazhar Alam Miankhel tossed out the petition against their decision last October to free Aasia Bibi from death row, where she languished for eight years.

"Based on merit, this review petition is dismissed," Chief Justice Khosa told a hearing at the apex court, which overturned Aasia Bibi´s death sentence for blasphemy last year.

"You could not point out [even] a single mistake in the Supreme Court's verdict," the top judge told the petitioner's lawyer.

The FO spokesperson, Dr Faisal, said that Bibi can travel inside Pakistan or make a foreign visit as she has been cleared from all charges from the highest court of the law.

Sources have informed Geo News that Bibi is still in Pakistan.